Global value chains and trade policy

The World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on the Global Trade System has just published it’s latest report. The report deals with the shifting geography of global value chains, and the implications this holds for trade and investment policies, particularly in developing countries. The contents range from economic and political-economy analyses of the nature of global value chains, through two company case-studies including one African, to the new phenomenon of services value chains. Peter Draper chaired this council process. The report is available here; an opinion editorial published by Business Day is available here; and a longer op-ed published on the international economists website, VoxEU, is available here. The report has also been carried on a number of international websites including the WTO, Evian group, and Pacific Economic Cooperation Council.

UPDATE: View my half hour interview with CNBC Africa on the report and its implications for Africa. Part 1 is available here; part 2 here.